Kitchen conversion due to start in 2-3 wk, should I postphone

[missingeu]

Hi,
First time posting. We due to have a downstair toilet and kitchen rejig in April - the work is due to last 4 weeks.

Am consious with current climate, cornovirus and economic situation - would it be wise to postphone. I really don't want to upset builders.

any advice appreicated

If you can afford it then please go ahead. Small businesses are going to be decimated as it is. You can have building work done without direct contact - use video call/phone calls.

We are mid way through ours and have decided to carry on. It needs doing and I think builders will be grateful for the work over the next few months.

My fitter has already cancelled mine (due to start tomorrow), although I was happy for it to go ahead. Bit gutted.

I suppose the risk is that the work begins but can't be completed because of lockdown/travel restrictions.

Thanks. For replies will go ahead. DH has put spanner in work by now moaning about the plans he’s had months to look at!!

I personally wouldn't, what if your builder gets ill half way through and you're left in chaos?

I’d not be returning if you cancelled me! I’d go and work elsewhere. Go ahead and take sensible measures. We are 3 weeks into a build

No go ahead unless you or they are ill. This situation could last 18 months (worse case scenario) we need to keep real life going as much as we can, otherwise at the end of this there will be no companies left to do you kitchen.

Too risky for me. We could lockdown or you or the builder gets ill (or both consecutively!) And end up living in chaos indefinitely.

We are 2 months into a 5 month build with knock through and loss of kitchen due to happen soon. We are continuing but I would think twice for a new project. We may rent somewhere during knockthrough.

We started our bathroom renovation on Monday with a wonderful local tradesman. He's been working to make sure we still have daily access to a toilet, sink and running bath,

We've been happy to go ahead (as long as they were happy to start the project). More importantly, they didn't charge us for a deposit, which I would completely offer now if they wouldn't be able to start the project due to CV to make sure they had some income to rely on.

They've had projects cancel left, right and centre from the current pandemic, causing quite a lot of stress being an independent small business and having a uncertain revenue stream. So we've booked them for an additional 2-3 days of work (jobs that needed doing and made sense to do with current renovation).

Either way, they have been absolutely legendary, they have become my go to people and I'm now pretty much a lifetime customer.

We are carrying on with our renovation (which had already started to be fair). There’s a large portion of our house out of action and I feel like if we can at least get it to the point of being useable that would make the next few months a lot more manageable. We can keep ourselves very separate from the workmen as it’s only really in one room (which is also most of our downstairs).

I’m not sure how I’d feel about starting a job though, especially if there’s a possibility of the disruption being really difficult if work had to stop. You’d need to be prepared for them not being around when you asked for them again though.

That said there’s currently a chat thread where the opinion on this is very different.